New Mexico
KCBD Investigates: FBI report details new information in New Mexico murder, kidnapping case
LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – The KCBD Investigates Team has obtained court documents that provide additional details about the murder and kidnapping case in Clovis, New Mexico.
At about 4:25 p.m. on May 4, law enforcement received a call about bodies found at the Ned Houk Memorial Park in Clovis.
Law enforcement identified the women as 23-year-old Taryn Allen and 23-year-old Samantha Harley Cisneros.
Law enforcement also found Cisneros’ five-year-old daughter in critical condition with a gunshot wound to her head.
The KCBD Investigates Team confirmed she remains in critical condition at a Lubbock hospital, but we’re told she is stable.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: KCBD Investigates: Arrest warrant details suspect’s motive in Clovis kidnapping, double homicide
According to FBI Special Agent Matthew Frye’s affidavit, Allen and Cisneros were found with multiple gunshot wounds. He stated Cisneros had additional injuries to her legs and back that looked like she had been hit and dragged by a vehicle.
While at the scene, law enforcement found a baby bottle and a stroller at the park, but they could not find a baby.
Law enforcement searched Cisneros’ vehicle and found a receipt to a nearby dollar store from earlier in the day.
Officers reviewed the dollar store’s surveillance video and confirmed Cisneros’ 10-month-old daughter, Eleia Maria Torres, was with her mother and big sister that day.
Law enforcement issued an Amber Alert for Torres.
At the scene, officers reported they found 9 mm handgun casings and a sideview mirror from the driver’s side of a maroon colored Honda.
Witnesses told law enforcement they drove by Ned Houk Memorial Park between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. and said they saw a maroon car at the park and it looked like the driver was talking with the women.
Officers collected video surveillance from a McDonald’s near the park which showed a maroon Honda with a Texas license plate in the drive-thru lane around 2:40 p.m.
Officers contacted the owner of the vehicle who said he had rented the car to 26-year-old Alik Isaiah Collins through a car rental website.
The owner of the vehicle worked with law enforcement to use the car’s GPS monitoring system to track Collins.
Prior to the shooting, GPS showed the vehicle had traveled from Houston, where Collins lives, to Clovis, New Mexico.
The data also showed the vehicle at the park entrance at about 3:29 p.m.
Then, at 3:38 p.m., the vehicle left at speeds of up to 96 miles per hour, avoiding major highways as it headed east.
At 10:52 p.m., the vehicle arrived at a home in Abilene, Texas, that is about 270 miles from Clovis.
The vehicle continued to ping at that home through May 5 at 7:43 p.m.
At that point, the owner of the vehicle reported the car as stolen and remotely disabled it while it was still at the Abilene home.
The vehicle’s owner also gave law enforcement Collins’ cell phone number, which they say showed Collins to have been at the park on the day and time of the murders.
On May 5, 2024, and into May 6, 2024, law enforcement officers with the FBI and the Abilene Texas Police Department Narcotics Unit began conducting ground surveillance at the home.
At approximately 1:15 a.m. on May 6, law enforcement observed a black male pushing the maroon Honda out of the garage and into the street.
During the early morning hours of May 6, 2024, while law enforcement was preparing to execute a search warrant at the residence, they observed an Uber driver operating a Cadillac SUV arrive on the street in front of the home.
A black male, later determined to be Collins, exited the residence carrying a baby.
According to the undercover officers, Collins placed the baby on the rear passenger seat of the SUV and got into the front passenger seat.
That is when officers said Collins carjacked the Uber driver at gunpoint, and forced him out of the vehicle.
Then, officers said Collins drove away with the baby still in the car.
The Abilene Police Department reported Collins intentionally rammed into a police vehicle as they attempted to stop him.
Officers pinned the vehicle, forcing it to stop.
They took Collins into custody and recovered baby Torres who was uninjured.
Law enforcement reported finding a Glock handgun loaded with 9 mm ammunition on the floorboard of the vehicle.
The FBI confirmed Collins is not the parent, grandparent, brother, or uncle of this child, and does not have legal custody of the baby.
During this investigation, the FBI reported they had communicated with Collins last year.
The FBI reported Collins had called in September 2023 and said he wanted help finding his daughter.
During this phone call, the FBI reported he made threatening statements so they called in local law enforcement.
The FBI stayed on the phone with Collins until the Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office arrived and took Collins in for a mental health evaluation.
The following month, on October 10, 2023, Collins called the FBI again and reported if law enforcement did not assist him with locating his missing five-year-old daughter, he would “start killing people and children.”
Collins stated that at one point he had kidnapped a woman and her son and then sent a picture of the kidnapped individuals to the FBI to pressure law enforcement to assist with locating his daughter.
The FBI reported Collins was intoxicated and could not provide his child’s true name but referred to her as “Rebecca.” He could not provide the child’s mother’s name either.
During these conversations, Collins said he did not have a weapon and did not intend to hurt anyone, but he made the threats to draw attention so law enforcement could help him find his daughter.
A second referral was made to local law enforcement who attempted contact with Collins but was unsuccessful.
A National Instant Criminal Background System alert was put in place to notify law enforcement if Collins attempted to purchase a firearm.
Additionally, Collins was prohibited from purchasing firearms in Texas as a result of his mental health evaluation.
At this time, the KCBD Investigates Team is working to learn how Collins got a gun.
We are also working to learn if there is any connection to Collins and the victims.
A public defender has been assigned to this case.
Loved ones of Allen and Cisneros have set up GoFundMe accounts to help pay for their funeral expenses.
According to Muffley Funeral Home’s website, Cisneros’ family is gathering at The Chapel Thursday, May 16 from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Services will take place Friday, May 17 at noon with a burial following at Lawn Haven Memorial Gardens in Clovis.
The website states a visitation for Allen will be held on Saturday, May 18 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. at The Chapel located at 1500 Thornton Street in Clovis, New Mexico.
A celebration of life will follow at 6 p.m. at Hillcrest Park located at 1001 Sycamore Street.
Copyright 2024 KCBD. All rights reserved.
New Mexico leaders are backing a bipartisan bill after 12 confirmed U.S. screwworm cases, including one case in a Lea County dog.
SANTA FE, N.M. – New Mexico leaders are backing a bipartisan bill after 12 confirmed U.S. screwworm cases, including one case in a Lea County dog.
New Mexico State Veterinarian Dr. Samantha Holeck said the parasite has spread to New Mexico, though officials say they have not found any human cases.
“This is also not a political issue this is a nationwide issue that we all need to address because it affects all warm blooded animals including humans,” Holeck said.
U.S. Reps. Gabe Vasquez and Teresa Leger Fernandez support the Protect America’s Herds Act.
The bill would create a grant program to train people to identify, treat, prevent and report screwworm. It would also support more livestock inspections and education for ranchers.
Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez said she heard concerns from tribal leaders about the cost of protecting cattle herds.
“I spoke with one of our tribal leaders today and they have cattle operation and they’re worried, and they’re talking about how much more money they’re having to pay to go make sure they check on their herds and there are extra costs,” Leger Fernandez said.
Funding would prioritize states and tribal communities most at risk for screwworm outbreaks.
State health officials said screwworm is not a food safety issue. They also said ranchers should stay alert but not alarmed.
New Mexico isn’t done with Meta yet. After the second phase of a landmark trial, the state is asking a judge to make the company pay almost $1 billion to address harm done to young people in New Mexico, SourceNM reports. In a court filing, attorneys with the New Mexico Department of Justice argue that Meta’s addictive design features and recommendation algorithms “substantially contributed to the increase and severity” of problems including depression and eating disorders. The state wants a judge to order Meta to pay $953 million into a fund for public education and behavioral health programs, reports Fox News.
- After the first phase of the trial in March, a jury found the company endangered children and misled the public about its platforms’ safety. Meta was ordered to pay $375 million in damages, $5,000 for each violation.
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez has argued Meta executives prioritized profit over minors’ safety, ignored internal warnings, and misrepresented what they knew about harms to young users. In the second phase, First Judicial District Court Chief Judge Bryan Biedscheid heard arguments on whether the company’s actions created a public nuisance, the Santa Fe New Mexican reports. Final filings in that phase of the trial were submitted Friday. Beyond potential financial penalties, Biedscheid will also rule on the state’s request for Meta to make changes including stricter age controls and “safer algorithms” that “do not prioritize engagement over well being.”
Meta says New Mexico is overreaching, warning that the proposed mandates are “impractical and ill-considered” and “would risk leaving teens less safe, infringe on parental rights, and stifle free expression.” Meta argues that New Mexico hasn’t proven that its platforms affect mental health outcomes. In court filings, Meta has claimed that the state is seeking $3.7 billion, not $953 million, but Chief Deputy Attorney General James Grayson says the higher figure is an expert’s estimate of the cost to fund all child mental health interventions in the state. “We’re not trying to hold Meta responsible for mental health harms in general in New Mexico, only for what social media has cost,” Grayson tells the New Mexican.
-
Politics11 minutes agoVideo: Demining the Strait of Hormuz
-
Health26 minutes agoVideo: Wii Bowling Takes Over Tulsa Retirement Homes
-
Lifestyle41 minutes ago
This Pride month, teen flicks are recasting familiar tropes with a queer sensibility
-
Technology49 minutes agoNASA selects Eric Schmidt’s rocket company for a 2028 mission to Mars
-
World56 minutes agoBritish Prime Minister Keir Starmer faces potential leadership challenge from newly-elected Andy Burnham
-
Politics59 minutes agoReporter’s Notebook: How Trump’s surprise move on DNI confirmation upended key Senate deal on FISA
-
Health1 hour agoWeight-loss drugs linked to ‘Ozempic ears’ and other cosmetic complaints, surgeons say
-
Sports1 hour agoFlorida AG launches civil rights investigation into MLB’s warning to Christian pitchers over Pride Night caps
